I went to a networking night and info session and met with several Merck employees. I applied online and about a week or so later was emailed about an online assessment. It was essentially a personality test and also examined analytical capabilities. It took a little over an hour and was split into sections. In one of the sections, I had to skip a question because I ran out of time. 4-5 days later I was contacted about setting up a phone screening. The phone screening took about 30 minutes. I am waiting to hear back about the next rounds of interviews, and should hear back within the next week and a half.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Why Merck? What do you do outside of school/work? What was your most gratifying experience work experience?
I applied online. The process took 5 weeks. I interviewed at Merck in Oct 2021
Interview
A link will be sent that will ask you to do select which decision you more closely agree with. For example,
1) I always share my opinion even when its not in my best interest to do so vs There are both positive and negative things about change, but I prefer things to say the same.
2) I would rather do things that can only be done one way than do things that require creativity vs I do not really have any long-term career goals. You then have a slider to choose which you agree with more. No question you can really "prepare" for and most of them you don't agree with either. During the next session you'll be basically playing a memorization game.
The next interview is a separate day. You're given a prompt and given 2 minutes to record your response. Theres about 8 questions. You'll have 1 chance to rerecord before submitting. Theres no time limit before you have to begin recording. The questions were slightly more elaborate than basic interview questions so know your experiences and make sure to answer all parts of the question. The way the questions are formatted they essentially want you to answer in the STAR format without saying it.
The final interview is a panel interview with 3 people who work at Merck. You first give a 15 minute presentation on yourself where they want you to include these 5 behaviors: Learning, Sharing, Experimenting, Empowering, Networking.
The later half of this panel interview was basically a second question based on each of these behaviors that will make you feel like you're repeating your presentation.
Later in the day you will have a group interview with 3 other people. You're each given a product with pros and cons and you have to talk for about 45 minutes with one another to decide which you will present to the "CEO" for another 15 minutes.
Later after that you will have a reflection call which is more laidback for about 30 minutes. There were maybe 2 interview questions asking about your resume and future. Other than that its a short back and forth with your questions.
Overall, the people were really nice and interesting to talk to.
Interview questions [5]
Question 1
Learning: To invent for life, we often need to be curious and seek information to fill knowledge gaps. We must also welcome and try new experiences.
Think about time(s) where you explored a new area/topic because you were curious. What did you learn? What were the outcomes?
Sharing: To invent for life, we must “roll up our sleeves” and work together. This requires teamwork and working for the common good.
Think about time(s) where you quickly gained the trust and support of your peers as you worked together to solve a problem or address a challenge. What did you do that made it work? What were the outcomes?
Experimenting: To invent for life, we must see challenges as opportunities and not be afraid to experiment with our ideas.
Think about time(s) where you took a risk and experimented with a new idea or way of doing something. How did you feel? What were the outcomes?
Empowering: To invent for life, we need to enable an environment where everyone can do their best work. We need to be inclusive and value all input and experience.
Think about time(s) where you inspired others and created an environment of shared ownership. What did you do to create this environment? What were the outcomes?
Networking: To invent for life, we need to be able to build partnerships and break down barriers amongst our colleagues, teams and organizations.
Think about a time(s) when you needed to engage and align others outside of your group to work towards a common goal. How did you do this? What were the obstacles? Where were the outcomes?
I applied through college or university. The process took 2 months. I interviewed at Merck (Kenilworth, NJ) in Oct 2016
Interview
3 part interview process:
1. one on one interview
2. panel interview with two interviewers
3. group discussion with other interviewees
1&2 were exactly the same type of questions and format, the only difference was the number of interviewers.
For 3, the interviewees were given a package to read, describing a product to endorse and convince other interviewees to sell as the company's new product. One had to discuss with others and try to convince them to sell one's product over all others'. Once the group reached the final decision on which product to sell, the group had to present to the "VP" of their decision and explain why
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Tell me a time when you had a conflict with a person in a group.
